The Sporting Club, and the Imperial Minstrels

The first part of the title seen just above it a little mis-leading as far as connotations go, if you know the double meaning to the term as far as 1890's slang goes. The context in this case of the term "sporting club" is more literal, meaning a club for sports enthusiasts. The reason of mentioning this is because of one small newspaper section I found within the past week or so. It was published in The New York Daily Tribune, dated June 21, 1898. This section was not really too significant, but it pointed something out that proves that Hylands was out playing other "gigs" while working at Columbia in his early days there. This gathering was held by the Knickerbocker Athletic Club, which was essentially a clan of sport enthusiasts who held many sport events, like Football and Baseball. It seems that in the summer of 1898, this club began hosting social gatherings that just happened to have entertainment. On Wednesday June 20, 1898, it seemed that the accompanist for the evening was Fred Hylands, plucked by the sportsmen from Columbia's exhibition parlor for that evening. He probably went to make records at Columbia's studio from the morning to the afternoon, only to leave and go off to the Athletic clubhouse. I wonder if things like this were common with Hylands. They must not have been in most of 1898, though after 1901, they seemed more common since he was performing in shows occasionally, and doing other things like that. I still have yet to learn and read more sections that prove this. 

Speaking of Hylands, there hasn't been any luck yet in the search for his "Narcissus Gavotte", though I will continue to look extensively for it. It is certain that the LOC owns a copy of the piece somewhere in its vast collection of sheet music. All we have still is that tantalizing first page from the back of Hylands' "The Darkey Volunteer":

It seems like Hylands is playing tricks on us by making the piece very hard to find! 

In fact, I will do some more digging to-day and tomorrow for the piece, since I've got my mind to it now.  Hope I can find it before giving my seminar on Hylands in November...

Now, onto the Imperial Minstrels. I don't know many collectors who really enjoy the records that were made by the Imperial Minstrels, but I really like them. There's something about them that makes me think they had so much fun making those records. This especially was so when Hylands became Columbia's pianist. If you know of the history of this group, it stems back to 1894 with this chap:

Dandy Len Spencer. 
He began this series of minstrel recordings because he had a new member for his envisioned minstrel troupe. This new member was George W. Johnson,  who was actually a black man! Having an actual black man on his minstrel recordings was a very big deal to the other record companies, and made Edison's staff jealous from the amount of profits and attention these records received. He began this series for the U. S. phonograph company, since that's where he worked at the time.  It has been recently discovered that a handful of these original 1894 recordings are held in a few collections, which means that the theory of those recordings being gone is not true at all. None of them have been transferred for all collectors to hear on the Internet, but hopefully they will be sometime soon, since many of the jokes and songs have been transcribed from these records. 
The second installment of this minstrel troupe involved Steve Porter and Roger Harding, two new Columbia staff members in 1896 and 1897. The pianist on these relatively few 1896 and early 1897 recordings would either be Ed Issler or George Schweinfest(if it was 1896, probably even Fred Gaisberg for that matter...), it's unclear if this one just below is one of these earlier installment records, since both Harding and Porter are on it, but the piano playing isn't very distinct in some way:
http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/search.php?queryType=@attr+1=1020&num=1&start=1&query=cylinder9969
It's definitely recorded in 1897 though. 
The terrible sounding piano really gives the date away. 

Remember what Spencer did to that piano. 

This incident in italics above happened in earlier 1897, so that essentially made the piano sound awful for half of, if not more of, that year. When Hylands took over that piano chair in 1898, their records became even more fun to make, since Hylands was the perfect pianist for the minstrel series. He seemed a better fit than any of the other previous pianists, which is pretty strange when thinking that he was a generation younger than Issler, and that Issler would have grown up in the first wave of the Minstrel era(the 1850's and 1860's mind you). Hylands seemed better for the wild and quick bones playing of Len Spencer, even if Issler had used Spencer for the same reason on his orchestra records in the years before that. The great opening overtures by Spencer and Hylands were very fast, and full of their great partnership skills. 
Such as the opening overtures on these records:

http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/search.php?queryType=@attr+1=1020&num=1&start=1&query=cylinder13296

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPNJeybjZxU
(this record is played way too fast, but it's a great one nonetheless, with a fantastic closing song as well!)
These fun records with Hylands on piano only were only done in 1898, as the next year, Spencer decided to have the entire Columbia orchestra get involved. These records are the most common ones as far as the Imperial minstrels go, as they were a spectacular of modern recording technology. 
You can hear four of these in the links below
(listen for Hylands' awful laughter on them, also Spencer's... they're loud and obnoxious)
http://www.tinfoil.com/cm-1312.htm
(note Steve Porter's awful singing at the end on this one...)
http://www.tinfoil.com/cm-0011.htm#c13000

http://www.tinfoil.com/cm-1203.htm

http://www.tinfoil.com/cm-1602.htm
This one is particularly interesting, since the piano in the orchestra(by you know who) is not really playing in sync with the rest of the orchestra. 

These records must have taken to much time and organizing to get done, since there would be twenty or more squeezed into a room to make these records, and all the balancing of everyone must have been awful, and maintaining the balance when they were recording. These records must have taken a few rehearsals to perfect, and thinking of Spencer being that very strange perfectionist, he managed these sessions very well it seemed, save for a few weird things that weren't supposed to be there, such as random yelling, like on this one here:
http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/search.php?queryType=@attr+1=1020&num=1&start=1&query=cylinder15483
hear it at 35-36 seconds in
(the title of this one by the way is "Good Bye Dolly Gray")

One of the records by the Imperial Minstrels I would love to share but can't has a fantastic weird thing at the beginning that I think is probably from Hylands. The loud whistling that usually is at the cheering in the beginning, there's a weird descending whistling thing that is about piano distance, and it's something that I haven't heard on all the other ones listed. The piano on the closing overture is also a little out-of-sync as well, so that means Hylands is there. 
In 1898 and 1899, this minstrel group was so popular, that Spencer had them all go out on a tour, which was reported in many newspaper sections, more than expected in fact. It seems that great tour(advertised in The Phonoscope below)

was indeed a huge success by early 1899(which may or may not have been part of the reason why Spencer and Hylands grouped together as publishers...think about that for a moment). It was because of this tour that the records had orchestra accompaniment rather than the previous piano. Many New York newspapers reported performances of this tour, and it seems that every one of them was a success, save for a reports of beastly weather, which every section on it said something about that it seems. The weather must have been really awful if they mentioned it that often! The Newspaper reports seem to last into early 1899, which makes sense, since it was in February that Hylands roped Spencer in to become an associate in his "Knickerbockers" firm, even though he wasn't really one of the three names running the function, as we know, that came the month after. 

By the way, September 20, 1897 was when Hylands' Narcissus Gavotte was copyrighted. I missed the day, but thought it should be noted. 

Hope you enjoyed this! 

About Various things

I have certainly had an interesting week, at school and at my general record research. I have  noticed lots of little funny details on records I have heard many a time this week. This first one I would like to mention is one of those "Imperial minstrels" records led by this guy here:

 

Yep, Len Spencer. 

His records are always an adventure, whether they be his solo records with Fred Hylands or his fully planned out Minstrel productions. This one is one of his minstrel productions from the late 1890's, with all the crew together. Here you go with an untitled record by Spencer's Imperial Minstrels, from 1900.

Here's everyone involved(I can hear other than the Spencer's)on this record:

(Roger Harding)

Well, that's two of the singers(which there are more of on this cylinder) but we know some of the boys in the band as well. 

Did you hear it? There was this one yell just after the applause at the beginning! I heard this record for the first time this week and found that little thing absolutely hilarious. I'm not really sure who it might be, but it was certainly someone in the band. I really shows the size of their recording room as well, it's funny really, because it sounds so out-of-place. It could be Fred Hylands for all I know! It is a very messy cylinder, but at the end, you can really hear how much of a production it was. You can actually hear how many singers were involved and how many of the Columbia orchestra were involved. That in itself would mean well over 20 people in a single recording room. How did Spencer do it? I haven't the least idea. By 1900, these minstrel records that Columbia was releasing were very complicated and full. Which is quite far-fetched from the smaller ones he did in late-1897 and early 1898 with his close friends such as this one here, featuring Fred Hylands on the piano. He did get more people on his troupe by 1899, as that is the year that you can see all of the updates of "Spencer's Minstrels" performances in The Phonoscope, which by the middle of 1899, had quite a production of singers and performers, as can be heard on the first record mentioned on this post. 

For this next record, I would like to compare two records led by two different pianists. They are both the same title, but by different orchestras. 

This first one is by Banta's orchestra, which made a handful of records or so in 1895 and 1896 for a few companies, here you go with Frank P. Banta's orchestra's rendition of "Dancing in the Kitchen".

A few collectors have said that it may be Banta himself announcing the Banta's orchestra records, and it is quite possible. Personally, I believe in this notion. There's really nothing that counter-argues this theory. I think this very cylinder is the one that captures Banta's voice the best. If you compare this cylinder to the later Victor's where you can hear him counting the band off, you might be able to find a slight resemblance between the two examples. Here are two of those Victor's for a comparison:http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/100002301/Pre-matrix_B-3160-The_gridiron_march

http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/100002300/Pre-matrix_B-3159-Ragged_William

I think it's funny that Banta counted off like this:

"One---two---one---two!"

That's not super common in ways of counting off a band. 

Now onto the other cylinder of "Dancing in the Kitchen". This next one can be led by one of three pianists:

Fred Gaisberg

George Schweinfest 

or 

Fred Hylands. 

Here is that cylinder.

I can't really tell personally. I just know that Len Spencer announces it and the announcement is the earlier installment of Columbia, as it has the "...of New York City" part of it at the end. This detail can indicate an age for the cylinder, which would mean any month of 1896 or every month of 1897 until November. That is a little confusing, and since the cylinder is played too fast, it doesn't help in giving an exact date to the cylinder based on the announcement. I do think that based on the time frame that this was probably recorded in, Fred Gaisberg or Schweinfest would be a better choice. The rhythm and prominence of the piano is what throws me off here, as it's almost Hylands-esque. However, the date possibility indicates a different pianist. It's not like this quiet cylinder here, where it's pretty obvious that Hylands in on the piano. It's mostly the announcements on Columbia cylinders that can either contradict the possible date or make dating it more confusing that it probably needs to be. 

I hope you enjoyed this! 

More about Burt Shepard

A good young researcher posted a kind comment on this blog this evening, and I would like to fulfill his kind obliging by doing a post fully dedicated to the great Burt Shepard.

There he is, the comical genius himself, in c.1890-92

I don't know what the exact year of Burt Shepard's birth was, and no one does really, as when he was interviewed, he never stated, and he specifically didn't state it. To most scholars and geeks, he was born between the years of 1852 and 1854, and probably in the midwest somewhere(quite possibly in or near New Orleans even). It's hard to know with him, but he was certainly from the midwest. But where exactly, we may never know. I have the slight suspicion that he might be from New Orleans is because of the fact that it was there that he got his first performing job. In c.1873-74, he joined a New Orleans based minstrel troupe and stayed with them until 1878. In that year, he was off in a minstrel troupe in Philly. He performed in several minstrel shows from 1879 to the mid-1890's, and at one point in 1892, he began his own show for a season or two. He wasn't just one of the minstrels in blackface of the shows, he also performed as the pale-skinned middle-man of the show, moderating and setting up the jokes, much like Len Spencer did on all of those Imperial Minstrels records, from 1894-95 and again in 1896-1901. You can hear one of these here from 1898(with Len Spencer, Steve Porter, Roger Harding, and Fred Hylands). I can certainly see and hear Burt Shepard doing what Steve Porter did on those cylinders with Spencer. 

In 1897, he went on a long trek around the world, which started first with England, where he made a few of his first records. He then stated that he went to Australia, Paris, and South Africa. He did make a few records for Pathe(pronounced "Patt'e" by Shepard on one announcement I have heard!)when he was in France, as a few can be found in various places online. 
When he was back in the U.S. in 1900, he was making records for Victor. 
This is where most of his remembrance comes from, his Victors and few Zon-O-Phones. 
Perhaps one of his most discussed records is his monologue, "The Boy and the Cheese", which was numbered A-7 on the Victor label. It was his first record, and it has been debated to being the first Victor commercially released. It has been debated, because for years, it was believed that Dan Quinn's Victor A-9 "Strike Up the Band" was the one, but later this place in Victor History went to Shepard's "The Boy and the Cheese". After he made this record, which sold reasonably well for a while, he was a "regular" in the studio. 
He was a favourite with all the studio workers, and he was a real riot to see in general. He was always said to be a jolly man with a slightly crude sense of humor, who wouldn't seem that way when first seeing him. He took on some really fun songs, that really suited his personality very well. 
Here are a few good ones:
http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/100002633/Pre-matrix_B-3490-Other_things_too_numerous_to_mention
http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/100002642/Pre-matrix_B-3499-It_was_beautiful
http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/200002948/B-1652-The_robin
http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/2000001155/Pre-matrix_B-1692-Thats_where_she_sits_all_day
https://ia600308.us.archive.org/23/items/BurtShepard/BurtShepard-Smoke.mp3

I know I already did a whole bunch of comments about Shepard's record of "The Robin", but I just cannot get over how he pronounces certain things and how midwestern his dialect sounds. In many ways, he really sounds quite a lot like Byron G. Harlan, and Harlan was from Kansas and Iowa. If only Shepard stated any hints as to where he might be from! It really is pretty much impossible to know where he came from with him not saying where he was from. Who knows why he didn't state this? That, we will also never know. 

Anyhow, he remained in the recording business until 1906 in America, and went off to England in 1908 up until the year of his death, in 1913. It's ironic, Shepard died in England the same year that Fred Hylands did, and for all I know, they may have run into each other! I am not really sure of what Shepard died of exactly, but it must have been tied in somewhat with his weight. Fred Gaisberg recollected quite a lot about Shepard, as he came into the Berliner London studio quite a lot in 1898 and 1899, he recalled Shepard being a real sight to witness when he made records, as a fat and jolly man with a great sense of humor. It would seem that Gaisberg would have heard of Shepard's death, as well as the early Victor executives that were left in 1913, and mourned him, just as all the Edison staff did with Frank P. Banta back in 1903. Shepard's records are highly prized to collectors nowadays and go for hefty prices when they surface. I haven't any myself, but I know collectors who have dozens of them, just like Silas Leachman's records as well. 

I hope this helped out the kind student who commented on my last Burt Shepard post! I hope you enjoyed this!